Chapter 61 The Official's Daughter

Jiang Chen was calm and composed, his demeanor relaxed yet tinged with a hint of teasing. "Fellow Daoist Zhang, I observe that you too have followed the path of Dao Entry through martial arts, and your cultivation has already stepped into the Xuanguang Realm. How could you be stumped by a mere Mortal woman?"

"Ahem, nonsense! I have traveled the Jianghu, slaying demons and eliminating devils; how could I possibly be afraid of a woman!" Zhang Zhongjian stubbornly insisted.

Having said that, he mustered his courage and walked toward the sedan chair.

Hearing the footsteps drawing closer from outside, the person inside the sedan chair let out another burst of sobbing.

This caused Zhang Zhongjian, who had just gathered a bit of courage, to instantly lose heart, and he stood there not knowing what to do.

Jiang Chen couldn't help but smile; from this, he could see that this bearded guest, whom he had only met once, was a man of genuine character, without too much guile.

The young lady inside was nearly scared to death, yet he, on the other hand, was standing there at a loss.

"Two young ladies, the bandits outside have been cleared away. Where are you heading? This Fellow Daoist Zhang has promised to escort you to safety. You can certainly trust in this Fellow Daoist's character." Finally, it was Jiang Chen who spoke up.

Zhang Zhongjian also hurriedly chimed in, "Yes, yes, two young ladies, it is safe outside now."

The sobbing inside the sedan chair stopped abruptly, and a moment later, a burst of whispering emerged.

Although they deliberately lowered their voices, both men outside were experts of the Xuanguang Realm, so whispering was no different from conspiring loudly to them.

A moment later, the curtain of the sedan chair was slowly lifted, and half a face appeared from behind it, as if she had clearly seen the tragic scene outside.

That small face instantly turned pale, and she collapsed back into the sedan chair, letting out an even louder sob.

"Xiaoqing, what did you see?" a gentle and anxious voice asked hurriedly.

"People, dead people, it's all dead people, wuwuwu!"

"In that case, it really is safe!" The other woman, who seemed to be a bit bolder, was actually happy instead of frightened upon hearing Xiaoqing's words.

Then, the curtain was pulled aside completely, and a gentle woman stepped out. She was beautiful, light-footed, dressed in purple, adorned with luxurious jewelry, and had dark hair cascading down to her waist like a silken veil.

This woman appeared to be no more than eighteen, and upon seeing the tragic scene outside, she couldn't help but turn slightly pale.

Her fingers, clutching a handkerchief, tightened until the knuckles turned white.

But when she saw the corpses of the guards, her eyes filled with sorrow.

Then, without the slightest disdain for the filth on the ground, she knelt down directly.

"You were all righteous men who risked your lives for the Great Tang, and today you died in this desolate wilderness for the sake of a mere girl like me. I have no way to repay you; once I return, I will surely build a shrine for you and offer incense day and night."

Seeing the woman's actions, Jiang Chen couldn't help but regard her with more respect.

In the eyes of high-ranking officials and nobles, ordinary people rarely existed; if they died, they died, and at most, they would just give their families some compensation. How could they show such sincere sorrow as this woman?

Behind this gentle woman, a timid woman in green also stepped out, keeping her head hidden behind the gentle woman.

The gentle woman looked at Jiang Chen and said sincerely, "Thank you, young hero, for saving my life. I cannot repay this debt of saving my life, so if you do not mind, Lingyi is willing to offer herself to you."

Jiang Chen glanced at the woman and said, "The one who saved you was not me, but this Fellow Daoist here."

Zhang Lingyi was somewhat surprised and looked at Zhang Zhongjian, who was extremely embarrassed at that moment.

Zhang Zhongjian hurriedly said, "Not at all, not at all! It was both I and this Fellow Daoist Jiang who acted together. It is just a pity that we could not save these guards in time."

"Thank you, brave warrior. I have no way to repay you in this life, but in the next life, I will surely be a beast of burden to repay you."

Zhang Zhongjian blushed until his neck was red, almost the same color as his beard.

"It is fine, it is fine. I practice chivalry not for fame or profit. Where are you heading, young lady? I promised those righteous men that I would escort you two to your destination."

"Lingyi was acting under my mother's instructions to go to the Western Capital, Chang'an, to find my father. Unfortunately, we encountered bandits on the road, and that is why..." Speaking of her sorrow, Zhang Lingyi couldn't help but shed tears.

"Alright, alright, it is just Chang'an, right? I will escort you there."

Zhang Zhongjian turned his head to look at Jiang Chen: "Fellow Daoist Jiang, I wonder where you are heading?"

"This poor Daoist is also heading to Chang'an."

"That is great! How about we travel together?"

Jiang Chen had no objections and readily agreed.

Zhang Lingyi and her maid, Xiaoqing, did not speak, but quietly listened to Jiang Chen and the others talking.

Consequently, after burying the corpses on the desolate mountain, the group of four headed in the direction of Chang'an.

On the way, Jiang Chen also learned the woman's name.

Zhang Lingyi.

It was indeed a name that only a scholarly family could come up with, Jiang Chen thought.

Along the way, their group of four attracted a lot of attention.

There was a Daoist, a chivalrous warrior, and women.

Naturally, it also drew some malicious gazes, but after seeing Jiang Chen in his black Daoist robe and Zhang Zhongjian, who looked very formidable at a glance, these malicious gazes retreated one after another.

It was just that Jiang Chen and Zhang Zhongjian were originally traveling on foot; with their cultivation, they naturally had no issues.

But now there were two extra women in the group, although they didn't say anything.

Yet Jiang Chen could still detect their discomfort from their occasional expressions.

The weather was hot, and having traveled over ten miles of mountain roads, even an average strong man would not be able to bear it, let alone two weak women.

Zhang Zhongjian, however, was thick-skinned and hadn't noticed anything at all.

"There is a grass market ahead; let us go over and see if there are any horses to buy." Jiang Chen proposed.

After approaching Chang'an City, even outside the city, there were some fixed markets.

They were like some rural markets in modern times, with regulations to hold markets on odd-numbered days or twice a week.

Today happened to be the day for the market, and Jiang Chen and the others happened to arrive at the right time.

The market was quite lively; passing travelers would come here to rest, and villagers from outside the city would also come here to exchange for some supplies.

Likewise, because this market was outside the city, the order was slightly poorer, and it was a place where all sorts of people were mixed together.

The grass market was close to the city wall, and its main framework consisted of rows of houses, forming a long path.

In the long path, there were not only shops but also vendors who put a piece of cloth on the ground, placed their goods on it, and started hawking directly.

Of course, there was no shortage of beggars either.

In fact, recently, even the beggars outside Chang'an City had started to increase.

Jiang Chen and his group ignored the gazes of others and walked straight to an agency that sold horses.

The horse dealer was originally sitting in the shop, bored, drinking herbal tea and fanning himself with a cattail-leaf fan.

As soon as he saw Jiang Chen and the others approaching, his eyes lit up; business was here!

"Guests, you can take a look at the horses I have here. They are all excellent horses, docile and strong!"